Steel guitar,steels and method



July 29, 1969 H. L. MULL 3,4

' STEEL GUITAR, STEELS AND METHOD Filed Nov. 4, 1965 United States Patent 3,457,822 STEEL GUITAR, STEELS AND METHOD Howard L. Mull, 8313 College Ave.,

' St. Louis, Mo. 63136 Filed Nov. 4, 1965, Ser. No. 506,322 Int. Cl. Gltld 3/00 US. Cl. 84-319 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to improvements in steel guitar constructions and particularly relates to new finger steels and other steel guitar accessories used with the novel finger steels.

Conventionally in playing the steel guitar, the left hand pulls a long steel which is placed across the strings at various places along the length of the fret board to change the pitch of all of the strings simultaneously. The palm and fingers of the hand are used to damp the strings and the right hand is used to pick the strings. This arrangement has the limitation that the versatility of the notes played is determined by the steel bar which changes the pitch of all the strings simultaneously and along a straight line.

The present invention has for its principal objective the use of a small steel fastened only on the tip of one or more of the fingers of the left hand and arranged to engage one or more strings so as to change their pitch independently of the other strings.

Another object is to provide a construction whereby any extraneous, undesirable hum or vibration of the strings is eliminated by a damping medium positioned adjacent to the nut end of the guitar where the strings are anchored and a weight positioned on each string approximately half way between the nut end and the first fret.

Another principal object is to provide a device for damping the strings attached to the wrist of the user and a heavy metal main fret bar having a stabilizing device whereby it can be positioned on the fret board and will not slide or roll along the board. The main bar also is of suflicient weight so that it is self weighting and does not need extra pressure from the left hand.

Still another object is to provide an improved pick which is attached to the fingers of the right hand to allow the strings to be damped by the fingertips.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent hereinafter.

The present invention comprises an improved steel guitar arrangement including a damping device, an independently weighted and positioned fret bar, finger steels and picks and means for eliminating extraneous vibrations from the strings.

In the drawings, where like numbers refer to like parts wherever they occur:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a finger steel;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along lines 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views of another embodiment of finger steel;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of the nut end of a steel guitar;

3,457,822 Patented July 29, 1969 FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view through a steel guitar showing another portion of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of another portion of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the invention shown in FIG. 8; and

FIGS. 10 and 11 are fragmentary perspective views of a pick used with the present invention.

The present invention is embodied in a steel guitar 10 having a nut end 11 and an outboard end (not shown) between which the usual number of strings 12 are stretched. A fret board 13 having fret markings 14 is positioned beneath the strings 12. This much of the arrangement is conventional, and the device is connected to various amplifiers and other electronic equipment, etc., none of which is important to the present invention and are well known to those familiar with the instrument.

A sponge rubber damper 15 is positioned between the fret board 13 and the underside of the strings 12 adjacent to the fret 14a closest to the nut end 11 to remove extraneous vibration from the strings, regardless of the position of the steel. This is necessary because (as will be explained hereinafter) the finger steels eliminate the availability of the left hand for this purpose. Weights 16, on the order of fish line sinkers of approximately ounces are positioned on the strings 12 between the first fret 14a and the nut end 11. The weight is not critical. This structure forms a secondary nut, and improves the tone quality and removes the hollow sound usually connected with the steel guitar at certain positions of the steels. As the strings are engaged by the steels above the fret and this arrangement moves the hollow sound to a point between the frets, the player does not get the hollow sound when the string is played in the present arrangement.

Conventionally the player will hold a long steel bar in the palm and fingers of his left hand so as to be able to place the bar across all of the springs at one time to change the pitch of the strings. In the present invention, an additional finger steel 16 (FIGS. 1-2) comprising a steel or brass cylinder 17 having a shaped edge 18 for engaging an individual string 12 (or more) and a finger attachment 19 for engaging the end of the players finger is used to change the pitch of the strings 12 independently of the main steel.

A modified preferred form of bar 20 is shown in FIGS. 3-4 and consists of a string engaging portion 21 having two spaced aligned string engaging edges 22 and 23 separated by a reduced portion 24 and finger attachment means 26 with another string engaging edge 25 at right 'angles to the first string engaging edges 22 and 23. This form of the steel 20 is used to engage one or two or more strings simultaneously. Obviously, the player can use the steels 16 and 20 on one or more fingers depending upon his strength, skill, or dexterity.

A heavy bar or steel 27 (FIGS. 5-7) of three-fourths to one pound in weight is provided at one end with a sponge rubber support 28 or anchor means whereby the bar 27 can be moved up and down the strings 12. The bar 27 extends across all of the strings 12, and when positioned on the strings 12 and the hand is removed, the sponge rubber portion 28 will anchor the bar 27 in position and prevent its slipping, rolling or sliding along the strings 12. This bar 27 corresponds to the conventional steel normally held in the players hand but has the added stabilizer 28 to hold it mechanically in position on the fretboard 13. When the bar 27 is weighted and stabilized, the left hand is free to move up and down the strings to change their pitch independently using the aforementioned finger steels.

It is desirable to be able to damp all of the strings 12 one time. A damping device 29 (FIGS. 8-9) is provided for this purpose. The device 29 comprises a wrist band 30, a backing member 31 attached thereto, and a sponge rubber string damping portion 32 attached to the backing member 31. The string damping portion 32 has a curved string engage'd'surface 33. The damping device 29 is slipped over the right hand of the player onto the right wrist, and the damping portion 32 is used to engage the strings 12 so as to damp the same.

Still another improvement in the present invention com prises the right hand finger pick 34 (FIGS. 10-11) having an open ended curved finger engaging portion 35 and a pick portion 36 comprising a downwardly curved arm bent inwardly toward the center of the wearers finger and having a slight hook on its end. The pick 34 is adapted to be slipped over the end of one or more of the users fingers with the tip 36 extending slightly beyond the end of the fingernail of the user to, in effect, provide the player with steel fingernails on the right hand. This leaves uncovered the finger tips 38 of the player to damp individual strings. For conventional picks, this portion of the finger is covered by the pick.

Thus it is apparent that the present invention achieves all of the objects and advantages sought therefor.

Various modifications and changes will be readily ap- 4 parent to those skilled inthe art and all such changes and modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A finger steel for steel guitars comprising means for References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 842,920 2/ 1907 Thedorf 84-322 2,903,935 9/1959 Raze 84-318 2,025,786 12/1935 Spina 84-319 2,416,854 3/1947 Smith 84-319 2,186,399 1/ 1940 Abbott 84-319 1,691,945 11/1928 Timm 84-319 RICHARD B. WILKINSON, Primary Examiner JOHN F. GONZALES, Assistant Examiner 

